ON THE ROAD WITH SCOTT on Rock & Roots: 2014 FORECASTLE - Day Three!!! #2

Nickel Creek After a six year hiatus, Nickel Creek - Sarah Watkins, Sean Watkins, and Chris Thiele - came together again in the Alabama Theater in Birmingham. Sarah, described it as waking from a long dream: familiar, comfortable, but infused with six years of individual experiences in music making and personal life. Sarah and Chris quickly corrected me that they are most certainly not viewed as a Bluegrass act and reject genre defining as restricting. They see their music as non-derivative. It certainly draws on known idioms, like bluegrass if you will, but rejects the need to be a genre act. Thiele talked about how mandolin master Monroe essentially created his own genre out of the air of what he heard. It's clear there guys see themselves in that creative tradition. Though truly serious musicians, their music - and particularly live shows - display an exuberance and joy that marks true art, and as such, is incredibly engaging. Sarah said it best, music shouldn't be written about or words put on meaning, but experienced. Well said. And, Scott the Lawyer cannot wait to experience tonight's show!